need some recommendations

[gardeninglee]

A gardening friend of mine asked for a recommendation for a tomato that has these characteristics:

1. must be bigger than a cherry and saladette size
2. she has never had much luck with slicers so does not want any big tomatoes
3. must be somewhat sweet and no bland tomatoes
4. productive
5. no late tomatoes

I asked her what tomatoes she gets at the supermarket and she says she likes the camparis.

What would be something good to recommend to her?

Red Rocket sounds like a good one. I haven't tried it, but someone on TV recently vouched for it. It's on my 2017 to-grow list.

Matina's pretty good (I've grown it), and meets the criteria, except that I'm not sure if it would meet your sweetness criteria. It has a tangy flavor. A lot of people seem to like it. Similar tomatoes like Stupice might be good, too. Carolyn likes Moravsky Div (but I don't know if it's productive or large enough, offhand; it is very early and quite tasty, I hear, though).

If it's not too small, you might try Ron's Carbon Copy. It's like a large cherry (possibly larger in other soil than what I used), but it's the sweetest tomato I've ever grown, and has a unique flavor. It's a dark tomato.

Early Wonder might work. It's supposed to be early, productive, and sweet for an early. It's also kind of big for an early. It's determinate (I'm not sure if that means it's less productive than an indeterminate with the same attributes). It's on my 2017 to-grow list.

Saraev M-22 and Li Cun seem to match the criteria. They're Canadian tomatoes, though (so, you'd need a Small Lots of Seed permit to get them legally, unless you find someone in the USA who has it; the permits are free, though).

There's always Early Girl F1. Some people think it's sweet when fully ripe (it's acidic when it still has orange on it). It's productive, early, and the right size. Dry-farmed Early Girls are supposed to be popular in California, I hear. It's one of my personal favorites. I've grown it before. It does have antagonists, though, who don't like the flavor.

I've heard good things about Heatwave II F1. Haven't tried it, though. They're supposed to be quite productive. 6-7oz; determinate; tasty (salty); heat-tolerant; disease-resistant.

Clear Pink Early seems to match the criteria. It's a determinate. It seems to be hard to find early indeterminates that match the criteria (midseasons might be a lot easier). It's on my 2017 to-grow list.

Maybe look into Alaskan Gold, Alpine, Belyi Naliv, Break O'Day, Bundaberg Rumball, Chalk's Early Jewel, Chuda Rinka, Cougar Red, Early Rouge, Jet Star F1, Jetsetter F1, Marmande, Maskabec, and Mat-Su Express, but I'm not sure on their sweetness and/or flavor. I haven't grown these, yet. Out of those I've mentioned in my whole reply, I've only grown Matina, Early Girl F1, and Ron's Carbon Copy.

[OzoneNY]

Porter Improved. Little smaller than a tennis ball and a good tomato flavor. Excellent producer.

[Labradors2]

Bloody Butcher might fit the bill.

Linda

[Cole_Robbie]

My favorite medium red is a Chinese variety called Ten Hung Tan Chieh

[Tormato]

Bulgarian Triumph, hands down.

And since your MMMM package was somehow torn open in getting there, request a few varieties that didn't make it your way the first time.

[Labradors2]

Rats Tormato! Now I'm going to have to put Bulgarian Triumph back on my grow list for 2017

Linda

[FarmerShawn]

I like Eva Purple Ball and Druzba. Sophie's Choice has been delightful most years.

[Gardeneer]

4th of July. Maybe slightly bigger than saldette. And it is very early too. ( DTM ~~60 days )

[b54red]

I agree with Farmer Shawn that Eva Purple Ball and Druzba sound like just what you are looking for. Pruden's Purple is another but many consider it a larger fruit but if you don't cull the fruit then they can be quite small. PP also sets great in the heat and after the first few clusters they diminish in size.

Bill

Pruden's Purple is a good tomato (my favorite hamburger tomato), and fun to grow. However, although it's prolific for some, it's not for everyone. I would consider it a risk if you're not sure how it does in your area or soil, yet. I suspect it's more prolific in humid areas. I grew it in semi-arid conditions in clay/silt-type soil in 2015 and only got three tomatoes (granted, they set in very hot temperatures, and they were quite large—and part of my plant was variegated). I'm not sure what your humidity level is like. I did get a late start on the transplant, though (so, maybe it could have been prolific; nevertheless, it stopped producing long before the end of the season). I'm trying to acclimatize it, though. We'll see if it's more productive in 2017 (its third year here; it was too crowded to be very able to prove itself productive in 2016).

For comparison, I got quite a few tomatoes from Early Girl F1, Roma, and Husky Cherry Red F1 in the same soil (but not on the same year).

[Tormato]

Originally Posted by Labradors2

Rats Tormato! Now I'm going to have to put Bulgarian Triumph back on my grow list for 2017

Linda

PM Chief Enabler a mailing address.

[Tormato]

Eva Purple Ball would have been my #1 recommendation for about the past decade. That was before I tried my first Bulgarian Triumph.

[Labradors2]

You're too kind Tormato, but I already have the seeds. Thanks

Linda

[Labradors2]

Just re-visited this site, and now I know who recommended Bulgarian Triumph over EPB! Thank you Tormato .

I've grown Bulgarian Triumph for two years running, and will be growing it again this year. It's THAT tasty .

Linda